Anti-Tourism Increasing In Montana Significant Numbers Of People Feel It Brings Crime And Crowding

Not everyone thinks tourism is a great industry for Montana, a University of Montana study shows.

Significant numbers of people in several communities are wary of tourism because they believe it brings crowding, crime and unpleasant commercial development while encouraging low-wage employment, university researchers found.

“Tourists only cause the prices to go up in the grocery stores, fill up our few recreation sites and have high impact on our highways,” said one of the people who responded to survey. Others indicated resentment about the cost of providing public services used by tourists.

The survey results suggest tourism is desired least where it has a strong foothold, and most where it exists minimally, if at all.

In the Bitterroot Valley, where tourism is a substantial part of the economy, public support for the industry was 49 percent.

But at Three Forks, where tourism has only started to become a major economic force, 59 percent agreed that overall benefits of tourism outweigh negative effects.

In Libby, local businesses have worked for years to draw tourists to events such as the annual Nordicfest celebration. Support for tourism there is 54 percent. At Fort Belknap, where there is not much tourism, 70 percent of the survey respondents backed the industry.